Beyond the Veil
by No.1HPfanLuvsHP
Summary: James, Lily, Sirius, Remus...all dead, yet all still living. Follow them through their deaths in their point of view and as they watch over Harry after death. Their spirits will live on, because the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. Used to be called "The Last Enemy that Shall be Destroyed is Death".
1. Chapter 1

~~~James's P.O.V – Halloween 1981~~~

I lay on the couch bouncing Harry up and down. I couldn't believe that at age 21 I had a wife and child, a beautiful baby boy. I put the baby down and pulled out my wand. Harry cooed excitedly. 'Oh, you like that, huh?' I started to conjure smoke, making it coloured and in rings, and Harry tried to catch them in his tiny fist.

Lily walked in then, saying she needed to put Harry to sleep. I handed the little boy over, saying 'Good night, Harry. Daddy loves you.' Lily walked off to the bedroom. I went into the hallway, yawning and rumpling my hair.

Suddenly, I heard the door crash open. I sprinted into the hallway. No, this couldn't be happening! Harry was one year old! But it was happening. Voldemort was at our house. 'Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!' Where was my wand? Oh, no. I'd left it on the couch. I'd have to fight the Muggle way. Before I could even raise my fists, Voldemort laughed, and said '_Avada Kedavra!'_ The world went black.

I woke up in a bright white room. Or was it a room? It seemed almost unreal, like it wasn't really there. Light fog breezed over me, forming pillars and a floor. Immediately, I knew what had happened. 'Noo…' I moaned. 'Lily…Harry…no!' I sank to my knees. My wife and son were out there, fighting for their lives. Suddenly, someone spoke behind me.

'You need not worry.' I turned to find –

'Dad? Mum?'

'Yes, James. We came to help you on the journey onwards.' Mum smiled and held out her hand. 'Lily and Harry will be okay. They will always remember you.'

For the first time since Harry was born, I broke into tears. 'I won't be there for them! I won't get to see Harry grow up! I won't…won't…' I collapsed into a heap of tears and sorrow. Suddenly, I sensed someone behind me.

~~~Lily's P.O.V – Halloween 1981~~~

I finished putting away the laundry and sat down on the bed with an exhausted sigh. Who knew taking care of a husband and son would be so hard? _Husband and son._Who knew I would be saying that after living for only 21 years? And yet, I had no regret for starting a family so early in my life. I loved Harry and James more than anything. I checked the clock near Harry's crib. 'Merlin, is it that time already?' I cried. I went downstairs to pick up Harry.

When I walked in, James was making little puffs of smoke come out of his wand, and Harry was trying to catch them. I smiled and told James that I needed to put Harry to sleep, and he handed him over with a smile. 'Good night, Harry. Daddy loves you.'

I was upstairs in Harry's room, finishing up his pajamas when I heard a crash and James yelling, 'Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!' Suddenly, all my exhaustion was gone. He was here, and he was trying to break apart my family. I began to push all the furniture against the door, hoping to keep him out long enough to get Harry somewhere safe. Then I heard those horrible words: '_Avada Kedavra!'_

No. Not James. Not now! But I had no time to grieve. Voldemort was looking for Harry, and I needed to protect him. I kept pushing the furniture against the wall. Wasn't there an easier way to do this? My wand! I'd left it downstairs, in the kitchen! Before I could think any more about this, the door was forced open. I dropped Harry into the crib and threw my arms out. I had to protect my child.

'Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!' I cried.

'Stand aside, you silly girl... stand aside, now.' He replied coldly. Stand aside? How could he think I would do that? Stand aside so he could kill my child?

'Not Harry, please no, take me, kill me instead -' I pleaded desperately.

'This is my last warning -'

'Not Harry! Please ... have mercy ... have mercy ... Not Harry! Not Harry! Please - I'll do anything ...'

'Stand aside. Stand aside, girl!' He raised his wand. I opened my mouth to convince him. Before I knew what was happening, he had spoken the words, green light flashed across my vision and everything was black.

I woke up a long time later. Or maybe it was only a little time. I was scared until I saw a familiar untidy black-haired someone. As if he had sensed my presence, James turned. 'Lily!' he cried. We embraced.

'Harry…' I began to sob uncontrollably.

'He'll be okay,' James murmured. 'Sirius and Remus will take care of him, I know they will.' His words reassured me, but only for a little while.

'But what if…what if they can't take him? What if they're hurt? What if Voldemort killed them too?' Tears poured down my face at the thought of Voldemort killing my husband's best friends too.

'No, Lils. They'd be here too.' He patted my back.

'What if they are? What if they are waiting for us somewhere else?' I cried.

'We would have heard about it , Lily. They wouldn't keep that secret.' I raised my head, and for the first time I noticed two people standing behind James.

'Mr Potter? Mrs Potter? What are you doing here?'

'We came to help James find his way onward. We sensed he'd be here. And we'll have none of that Mr and Mrs,' Mrs Potter said. 'James told us so much about you when he used to come home. He always seemed to describe you as 'the beautiful, smart, amazing Lily Evans', so we practically know each other already. I am Dorea, and this is Charlus,' she said. I know I should have said thank you or something, but I couldn't get over the fact that Harry – No!

'Voldemort was after Harry! What if he killed him?' I started crying again.

'Lily. I think he survived.' I raised my head hopefully. 'Wouldn't he be here otherwise? It's been a while since Voldemort – ' His voice caught. But I understood, and started breathing less heavily. We sat on a bed that seemed to come out of nowhere. After a while of comforting each other wordlessly, with James's parents watching us silently with wry smiles on their faces, I dried my eyes.

'James? I think I'm ready.' He understood, and immediately I could hear a faint whistle in the background. A pearly white train pulled up. It was almost like it was made of fog. Silently, a white compartment door slid open.

'Come, dears. Let's go.' Dorea took my hand while Charlus took James's. Together we stepped onto the train.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you all for the lovely reviews you wrote! I am terribly sorry I haven't updated in so long, but I really had no idea where this story was going. I'd like to thank**_**Hanalei, JessandDarcy, Tayla(anonymous reviewer), IggyLikestoExplode, GinnyEvans4, and PotionsForSev**_**for reviewing! Let me know what you think of the new chapter!**

~~~James's P.O.V – Life after Death~~~

Considering we were dead and being taken away from our son, the train ride to heaven was actually quite pleasant.

Of course, Lily kept bursting into tears every couple of minutes, but that was to be expected. I wanted to cry whenever I thought of Harry being raised by someone other than us, but one of us had to be the strong one right now. And Harry would be perfectly fine in Sirius' and Remus' hands. Aside from being a total prankster, of course.

While Lily and I were absorbed in our thoughts, my parents kept up a steady flow of conversation. 'There's so many people we want you to meet!' and 'Lily, you are really much prettier than you looked from up there.'

That was what got my attention. Of course! We could watch Harry grow up from heaven. It wouldn't be the same, but it was the best deal we could get. I squeezed Lily's shoulder reassuringly.

In what seemed like no time at all, or perhaps it was a very long time later, the train came to a stop. We got off and found ourselves in a beautiful (and gigantic) pearly-white train station. For some reason, it reminded me of King's Cross. I put an arm around Lily and hugged her close. She buried her head in my chest as we headed toward a large, cozy-looking home that was growing steadily clearer. My breath caught as I looked at it. It was the house we had had before moving to Godric's Hollow. It was where we had spent our honeymoon, and had the world's most brilliant kisses. It was where we had created a new life.

I heard Lily take a sharp breath and I stroked her cheek to keep her from crying. We walked into the house together, hand in hand, as we had done not even three years ago. I never thought my life would be over so quickly. Then again, it really wasn't. I could live up here as long as forever was.

'Wait,' I said. Lily squealed as I scooped her into my arms. 'If we're going to do this again, we have to do it right.' She actually giggled as I carried her over the threshold again. Sometime in the middle of all this, my parents had slunk away, probably to give us our privacy. I had never loved my parents more than I did now. Lily took a sharp intake of breath. I took my eyes off her face to see what she was looking at.

The walls were covered in Harry.

Not literally, of course. That would be grotesque. But we could see moving pictures of him, blown up as though they were being projected on the walls. He was wailing loudly as a hooded figure advanced on him. A flash of green - 'NO!' Lily screamed - and a crash as it rebounded upon its own creator. The beam ricocheted twice more before fading into nonexistence. Lily and I peered closely at the small crib. A faint wailing could be heard from within.

We both let out a breath we did not know we had been holding. I collapsed onto a sofa that appeared below me, pulling Lily with me. Our cheeks were wet with tears of relief. 'He survived,' I told Lily.

'I know,' she murmured. 'He's okay.' She pulled me close and we shared a tender kiss. I broke away to look at the changing wall. Something was obstructing our view. A giant being...

'Hagrid?' I whispered, disbelieving. 'No, no, it's got to be Sirius!'

'Sweetheart, calm down,' Lily said soothingly. 'He's probably just picking Harry up for Remus and Sirius.'

'Right,' I replied, falling back against the cushions. Hagrid picked Harry up and wrapped him in a small bundle of blankets. He got on a motorcycle that I recognized to be-

'Sirius!'

'See, I told you,' said Lily knowledgeably. Hagrid took off, flying over the house and into the starry night. We watched him fly for a while, and then he began to descend into a neat little city.

'Wait,' I said, sitting up straighter. 'That's not Sirius's apartment.' Hagrid continued to go lower until he came upon two figures talking in hushed voices in front of a house labeled 'Number 4'. I recognized Dumbledore and McGonagall. They talked for a moment or two before walking over to the house.

'Hold up a moment,' Lily mumbled. 'I know that house.'

'You do? Are they good people?'

'It depends on how you look at it,' said Lily shrewdly. '_That_ is where my sister lives.'

'What?' I shouted, leaping up. 'Harry cannot live there! They will never understand magic! Lily, that woman made your life hell because you were a witch!'

'That woman? She may be vile, terrible, and horribly rude, but she is still my sister. And I'm sure Dumbledore will explain everything to them.'

'Just because Dumbledore explains it, it does _not_ mean they will understand, or even try to! They will be the exact same as Petunia was when she heard you were a witch.' We both turned back to the wall. I needed to make sure Dumbledore explained everything correctly. The old man advanced toward the door while the others hung back. Dumbledore reached into his cloak and pulled out a letter. He tucked it into Harry's blankets and walked away.

'WHAT?' I yelled furiously at the screen.

'James-'

'No! Don't calm me down! He _left_ Harry there! What if someone takes him? What if a Death Eater tries to kill him? How could he be so irresponsible?'

'James, sweetheart-'

'And explaining it in _a letter?_ How is that going to help anyone? A letter doesn't leave the same impact as a real human being does!'

'Ja-'

'They're never going to believe anything! They won't even care that you and I are dead right now! They will hurt Harry and abuse him and terrify him his whole life. Mark my words!'

'James!' Lily cut me off as I opened my mouth to rant some more. 'There is nothing we can do. We will have to live-er-be okay with this. I wish it was different, you know I do. But we can't change it.' I fumed for a moment more before sinking back onto the couch.

'Fine. But I'm not going to be happy with it.' Time sped forward as the sun rose over Petunia's house. We could see the sign stating 'Privet Dr.' nearby. The door opened and a shriek resounded around the neighborhood. There was a crash as the empty milk bottles in Petunia's hand fell to the ground. Harry awoke instantly and started squalling. There was a thundering as Petunia's whale of a husband squeezed himself between Petunia and the door frame.

'Vernon!'

'Petunia! What is it?'

'It's-it's-' Lily's sister seemed to be at a loss for words. The husband looked down at the wailing baby - _our baby_, I thought angrily - and scooped him up before he could yell any louder. The couple hurriedly shut the door as their son began to scream as well. They looked at each other and Petunia took the baby from Vernon's arms as he thundered back up the stairs to pick up their son.

Petunia pulled the letter from the bundle of blankets that was Harry. She set him down on the table-'What if he rolls over! He could hurt himself!' I yelled indignantly-and slit open the envelope. Her eyes flew back and forth, her face turning the shade of oatmeal. 'Vernon!'

'What is it now?' grunted the Vernon, rocking the baby to sleep.

'Read this,' she replied, holding out the letter. He scanned the letter quickly, continuously looking from Harry to the parchment.

'Well, if this is your sister's and her husband's child-'

'It is-'

'Then we must get rid of him immediately,' finished the man.

'WHAT?' I yelled, for the third time. 'Do you see, Lily? I _knew_ this would be a bad idea! I knew it! They're going to put him in the orphanage, when he could have gone to Sirius and Remus, who would have loved him! Harry cannot live without love!'

'James, there is nothing we can do,' Lily whispered shakily, tears flowing down her cheeks.

'Wait,' said Petunia. We both turned back toward the screen. 'We can't.'

'Tuney, I knew you would come through!' Lily whispered.

'The boy can't go to the orphanage.'

'Why the bloody hell not?!'

'He needs to be protected. We will feed and clothe him, but he will never be one of our own.' Petunia looked scornfully at our baby, who was quieting down now that he realized there was no one to hold him and rock him.

'He will not have a perfect life,' said Lily, and I turned to face her. 'But he will have a home, and protection, and that is all I want for our child.'

I folded her into my arms and we held each other until we drifted off on the sofa, just as we had those three years ago.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I am so, so, so sorry for the long wait! I've had a lot to do, and I have finished a few other stories if you'd like to take a look at those. Really sorry about that, so here's to all of you who stuck with me!**

~~~Lily's POV~~~

I awoke face to face with a large pair of yellow eyes.

I squealed and sat up quickly. Something flew across the room and landed on all fours, hissing loudly.

'Lils? Whassamatter?' James asked groggily, raising his head slightly.

'There is_ something_ in the room!' I whispered back sharply.

'Lily, we're dead,' James reminded me. Well, he always was the most blunt when he was drunk or not quite awake yet. 'Nothing can hurt us. Go back to sleep.'

'But James...' I whined, looking warily at the thing that was still hissing.

'Oh, all right then. Budge up there, let me through.' James stood up and made for the light switch when they suddenly came on by themselves. 'Handy,' James commented dryly, flopping back onto the couch, but I wasn't listening.

_'Mo?'_ I said, staring at the thing that I now recognised. Our old British Shorthair cat meowed happily and leaped onto my lap. 'Oh no, you died too! Oh James, it's Mo!'

I fondled the old cat. Mo was the cat James got me after we got married. I was so lonely and James thought it would be nice to have a companion around the house. A few months later I found out I was pregnant, but by then Mo was a part of the family. James picked out his name. He thought 'Mozart' had a nice ring to it. Of course, the stupid cat teamed up with James and refused to be addressed by anything else, so I called him Mo. He must have died when the house collapsed, the poor thing.

'Oh you poor sweet mangy little thing!' I cooed to the cat. He purred and went over to James. My lazy arse of a husband groaned and flopped back onto the couch, the lights flickering off once more.

* * *

Well, once that minor crisis was sorted out, I was too worked up to sleep. I got up, careful not to disturb James, and went to where our old bedroom was. It looked exactly as it had when we still lived there. I was surprised to see the old papers and things I had kept in a drawer near the window. I pulled some of them out and smiled at the memories.

There was a picture of me, pregnant with Harry. I must have been in my fifth month, just before we had moved to Godric's Hollow because of the prophecy. Under that was a picture of James and me on our wedding day. Sirius roared with laughter in the background. I felt a pang of heartache as I remembered I wouldn't see Sirius for a very long time. He, Remus, and Peter had become like my brothers when I married James. They were as good as family to me. I slid the picture to the bottom of the stack of papers and looked at the next thing. It was a letter from me to my mum.

_Dear Mum,_

_Hope you're well. James and I barely get time to see each other, both of us are so busy with the Order. But when we do, it's like magic. I hope this turns out to be the same type of love you and Dad have._

_I'm actually writing because I've got some news. I'd been feeling a bit off-colour for the last few weeks, and James practically made me go to the Healer. Guess what, Mum? I'm pregnant! I know we're young, but I feel like this is right. I already love this baby. I'm only a month or so, and I just told James last week. He was ecstatic! You wouldn't believe what he did. He jumped out of his chair and knocked over three things before he picked me up, nearly killing Mo in the process. Lord knows I married a child!_

_I can't wait to see you again, Mum. I really miss you and Dad._

_Lots of love,_

_Lily_

Tears fell from my eyes onto the parchment. Even if the paper felt real, it was all just an illusion. It wasn't really there. And my mum would never know exactly what happened to my husband and me. I'd never said goodbye to her.

'Lily?' I turned to find James in the doorway. 'You might want to see this.' I followed him back to the living room, where the walls were moving again. There was Sirius, hair flying as he drove his motorcycle away from our house. He kept going until he reached an little condo that I recognised as Peter's.

Sirius hammered at the door and it flew open in a burst of magic. He stormed in and grabbed Peter by the scruff of his neck and threw him on the ground outside. 'HOW COULD YOU?!' he roared.

'I-I don't know what you're talking about,' Peter stuttered back. He tried to scurry away, but Sirius grabbed him and pushed him against the wall.

'YOU BETRAYED THEM, PETTIGREW!' he shouted. 'THEY TRUSTED YOU, AND YOU BETRAYED THEM!'

'I had to!' Peter sobbed, relenting. 'He would have killed me!'

'THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED! I'LL KILL YOU NOW, WON'T I?' Sirius kicked him down the front stairs, then ran after him until they were in the street. Muggles were starting to emerge to see what the commotion was. Peter immediately changed tracks.

'Lily and James, Sirius!' he cried. 'How could you?'

'You little - ' Sirius started, drawing his wand, but it was too late. From what James and I could see, Peter swiftly cut off one of his fingers behind his back and transform, blowing up the entire street.

Muggles lay dead all around. Ministry officials were fighting their way through, and when they reached Sirius and grabbed him, he started to _laugh._

He laughed on and on as they carried him away. Then the walls went back to normal.

**A/N: I've already started the next chapter, but I don't know when it'll be up. Sorry! Read my other stories to pass the time, if you'd like. Or go and read someone else's stories, because after this long break I really don't deserve reviews. :(**


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